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Love the Family

Imagine every action of yours aligned with achieving the greater good for humanity Wouldn’t that be a wonderful life affirmed by a sense of higher purpose? Sometimes I think we limit ourselves by thinking we are lost in the shuffle. Sometimes we think that one in seven billion is pretty bad odds to make an impact in this world, yet the very notion that any of us are here to begin with is truly miraculous, so why should we disempower ourselves by thinking that we are just one fish in a pond?

To expand upon the Goldfish metaphor of earlier, I really do believe we select our community. Whether or not we choose to perceive ourselves simply as local citizens or as citizens of the world are entirely up to us. Whether or not we choose to think our family only consists of our parents, immediate siblings and children, or if instead we see all the world as our family, is entirely up to us. Depending upon the environment we choose to associate with, we will experience that reality. Our world is only as big as we make it, and as soon as we choose to accept ourselves as global citizens responsible for the wellbeing of all mankind, only then will we move into greater planes of love and freedom.

I say freedom because it expands the possibilities for how we may serve those that we love. When the whole world becomes our family, we unlock new levels of love that we might likely not have experienced before if we think that only our immediate family loves us. However, with one big family, you receive love from every member of your family. Family loves family for no reason other than simply being! It is a beautiful, pure love, much as I understand God’s love for us. No strings attached, unconditional love.

When we realize not only that we are loved by everyone at all times, but also that our family is in need and we can always be helping them, then we will cease with lazy activities and ineffective behavior. When we identify with the oneness of mankind, only then do we rise to greater levels of service, loving all of our family with our actions. If we only feel responsible for ourselves or a select group of people close to us, then we likely will fall well short of achieving our potential. Only when we grow to accepting responsibility for the world as global citizens can we self-actualize. So long as we think we are only taking care of a few people, we will exhibit behavior of greed. However, if we identify with the oneness of humanity and perceive all as our brothers and sisters, we will soon realize the absurdity of selfish behavior and we will achieve and give more than ever before.

We are all in this together! A trite expression, but it rings true. There is something about proverbs that never gets old. Imagine the great shift of achievement that would occur if we identified with the world as one family. We would soon cut out our lazy behavior as well as our selfish consumption of television and food. We would become healthier, more giving, and more loving. Our world would suddenly be filled with love, peace, joy, and justice. Taking care of one’s immediate family is not enough to say that one lives justly, but striving to give everything we’ve got for the welfare of our fellow brothers and sisters – that sounds like a good way to live.

Think about behaviors you currently do that you know you would cease doing if your son, daughter, brother, or sister was suffering from malnutrition. How would you change your life so that you could provide for them? The situation described above is a real situation that is happening right now. Ending poverty might sound like a daunting task, but it simply comes down to crafting global citizens. As soon as we realize that we are empowered to save others and to be the change we want to see in the world, then we will really begin to shine, relentlessly pursue justice, and put our great love into action.